UEFA Champions League: Ranking the Winners

The task is no easy one, and is one that has required quite a bit of thought. There is no scientific method toward the selection process in ranking the 18 teams that have walked away with the UEFA Champions League trophy since the tournament changed its name from the European Cup, starting with the 1992-93 season.

One key criteria that was taken into consideration was how dominating a team was, particularly on the defensive end.

No. 18: Real Madrid 2000

Real Madrid's 2000 Champions League squad is the lowest ranking winner since the competition changed its name.

Real won its eighth European crown by defeating Valencia 3-0 in the final, which is certainly a solid result.

The club won Group E with 13 points in the first round, scoring 15 goals and giving up 7 in six matches.

In the second group stage, the Galacticos narrowly squeezed through to the final eight.

Real actually had a minus one goal differential and was tied on points with Dynamo Kiev, which had a plus two goal diferential. But the tie-breaker was head-to-head, in which Real had a one-goal victory and a tie against the Ukrainians.

Real Madrid defeated Manchester United 3-2 on aggregate in the quarterfinals and Bayern Munich 3-2 on aggregate in the semifinals before defeating Valencia.

All together, Real played 17 Champions League matches for the season, scoring 35 times and allowing 23 goals.

No. 17: Manchester United 1999

While this was certainly one of the great comebacks in Champions League Finals history, Manchester United's 1999 squad was far from its best.

The squad opened the first round in Group D by finishing second behind Bayern Munich, the squad it would eventually defeat in the final.

The Red Devils did score 20 goals, but they also gave up 11.

In determining the final eight squads, Manchester United was the last team to get in as just two non-group winners advanced to the quarterfinals.

Manchester United defeated Inter Milan 3-1 on aggregate in the quarterfinals and Juventus 4-3 on aggregate in the semifinals, before scoring twice in the final three minutes to defeat Bayern Munich in the final.

The Red Devils finished their Champions League campaign by scoring 31 times and allowing 16 goals in 11 matches.

No. 9: Barcelona 2009

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Barcelona began its campaign by winning Group C with 13 points, scoring 18 goals and allowing eight.

In the round of 16 Barcelona defeated Lyon 6-3 on aggregate. It moved on to defeat Bayern Munich 5-1 in the quarterfinals. In one of the best semifinal matchups ever, it passed Chelsea on away goals after the pair played to a 1-1 tie over two legs.

Barcelona won the final by defeating defending champion Manchester United 2-0.

For the Champions League season, Barcelona played 13 matches, scoring 32 times and allowing 13 goals.